Every architecture worker will, at some point, endure a period of stress or anxiety in the workplace. Sometimes, these feelings can be fleeting, caused by an exceptionally short project deadline, a difficult client, or even a legal dispute. If you find yourself actively hating your architecture job over a prolonged period, however, it may be time to take action. While your first instinct may be to seek a new job in a new firm, this is not always necessary, or even helpful. Rather, there may be steps you can take that can improve your experience and circumstances within your current workplace. Below, we offer our suggestions.
Do you have advice for colleagues stressed or anxious about their jobs beyond those set out below? Let us know in the comments.
One of your first steps should be to identify what you specifically do not like about your current job. Getting your thoughts on paper is itself therapeutic, but its real value here lies in allowing you to audit your experience at work throughout the days and weeks. Over time, you may be able to identify what tasks you do and do not enjoy, or whether particular projects are causing more anxiety than others. One week may not be enough, but after 3-4 weeks where you have experienced a variety of tasks and assignments across several projects, you may start to identify patterns.
With an understanding of what specific tasks or experiences you are anxious about, reflect on whether there is an opportunity not to change your company, but change your role. If you are currently working mostly on competitions, or jumping from project to project, ask if you might be happier working on fewer projects but in greater depth. If you are involved in design-stage work, ask if you would be happier on construction-stage projects. If you feel your current role isn’t offering the chance for you to exercise your greatest skills and talents, whether they be rendering, model-making, etc, explore whether other positions exist in your firm more aligned with your skills.
Ask yourself whether anything in your life beyond the office might be loading you with stress and anxiety that only manifests itself when you step into the workplace.
The workplace may be where you notice feelings of unhappiness, stress, or anxiety, but that does not necessarily mean the workplace is the source. Ask yourself whether anything in your life beyond the office might be loading you with stress and anxiety that only manifests itself when you step into the workplace. Everybody is different, but common underlying sources may be your personal relationships, your living environment, your social life/habits, or not engaging with as many hobbies or recreational pursuits as you want to. Even if you arrive at the conclusion that your work is the source of your anxieties, this step is still important to complete, as problems outside of work will follow you from one job to the next.
Your experience at work is influenced by more than the tasks you complete. Your relationship with your colleagues is also an important factor in how you feel in the office. If you only engage with colleagues who complain about their jobs, you will inevitably adopt the same outlook. Sharing negative experiences can be important if there is indeed a toxic management structure that requires solidarity among workers, but it can also cause you to magnify and extrapolate causes of stress or resentment in your job that you otherwise wouldn’t. To mitigate this, try and surround yourself with positive people and pay attention to social opportunities, whether that is an impromptu group coffee run or an organized outing.
To paraphrase and invert Kennedy’s famous quote: ask not what you can do for your firm, but what your firm can do for you.
The anxiety you feel at work may be caused by a concern that you are working hard but not seeing opportunities or benefits to make your efforts feel rewarding. Therefore, to paraphrase and invert Kennedy’s famous quote: ask not what you can do for your firm, but what your firm can do for you. Part of this is asking if you feel your salary or benefits level has stalled or is below what you believe it should be. In addition, think about what you want to achieve in your wider career, and what avenues exist in your current firm to work towards those goals. Does your firm offer training or product discounts for software you want to learn? Are there initiatives or projects in the office that align with your ambitions more than the projects you are currently working on? Might your position in your current firm open avenues for you to attend interesting events/conferences, or engage in community outreach on behalf of the firm?
Even if you conclude that your current job is a source of anxiety and that there are not many avenues available to improve it, this does not always mean you should leave straight away. If you are a licensure candidate, for example, leaving your current role to start a new job at a new firm may disrupt your licensure ambitions. Alternatively, you may be in the process of applying for a mortgage or loan where evidence of a secure, long-held job might work to your advantage. Ask yourself whether the difficulties you are currently experiencing in your firm are manageable enough in the short-to-medium term to allow yourself to weather the storm while you fulfill your larger career ambitions. After those ambitions are fulfilled, you may also feel freer to explore new jobs which, rather counter-intuitively, can ease anxieties in your current role. Enduring workplace anxieties for a larger goal is not a long-term solution, however. See the final piece of advice in this list on the dangers of long-term anxiety at work.
If you feel you have exhausted all avenues and still feel stressed or anxious over a long period of time, it may be time to consider moving workplace.
If you have engaged with the previous pieces of advice and still harbor anxiety or resentment, reach out to your firm’s management for a discussion. While part of a manager’s job is to monitor the well-being of their staff, doing so can be challenging while also managing clients, projects, and a business. Therefore, take the initiative and ask for a meeting to discuss your concerns. When doing so, do not arrive at the discussion only with complaints or concerns. Bring ideas or suggestions for a way forward too. Not only will this ease any sense of tension in the meeting by introducing a proactive ‘problem-solving’ spirit, but it also offers you an opportunity to sculpt your own role in the firm.
Up until now, the advice in this piece has been weighted towards strategies to improve your workplace experience without having to look for employment elsewhere. However, if you feel you have exhausted all avenues and still feel stressed or anxious over a long period of time, it may be time to consider moving workplace. When doing so, avoid quitting impulsively. Examine your financial and personal circumstances and ask if you are in a position to make the change. Just as importantly, examine the wider jobs landscape. In 2024, for example, where employment activity across the US architecture industry is slow, consider securing your next job before resigning from your current position. Regardless of the specifics, have a plan in place that will maximize your chances of moving jobs and careers without igniting the same stress or anxiety you are currently trying to combat.
Finally, follow our ongoing Archinect Tips series for advice and guidance on navigating through your architectural career.
Niall Patrick Walsh is an architect and journalist, living in Belfast, Ireland. He writes feature articles for Archinect and leads the Archinect In-Depth series. He is also a licensed architect in the UK and Ireland, having previously worked at BDP, one of the largest design + ...
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As an executive coach and former architect who works with many leaders in the creative professions, I agree with the author that exploring one's current workplace and role is the best place to start. But that exploration needs to dig a bit deeper than suggested. As humans first, we are energized when our work is aligned with our values and a sense of purpose - and extremely demotivated when they don't. I will often ask my clients who are ready to throw in the towel to reflect on why they became an architect in the first place - what was compelling about that particular design discipline? This often reveals one or more values that may have been pushed aside or forgotten, but when recognized once more can provide guidance for how and where to discover new sources of energy in your current role or a new one if necessary.
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